When Guy Laliberte began recruiting participants for the World Series of Poker’s $1 million buy-in The Big One For One Drop tournament last year, he told them he expected to persuade 18 players to join.

The 52-year old founder of Cirque du Soleil severely underestimated. Laliberte, as it turns out, attracts card sharks as proficiently as he does acrobats.

The Big One For One Drop got under way Sunday at the Rio with a capped field of 48 players and an alternate list of “several” more.

The biggest tournament in poker history officially carries a prize pool of $42.66 million with $5.53 million going to Laliberte’s One Drop charity, which provides access to water in poverty-stricken countries.

The winner will make $18.34 million, putting him at the top of the all-time money list regardless of previous results, and eight others will receive payouts.

Professional poker players’ willingness to fork over seven figures proved higher than anticipated. Out of the 48 hopefuls, 28 of them play cards for a living.

“I’m surprised by how many played in it,” said poker pro Antonio Esfandiari. “I’m surprised that I’m playing in it. But when I heard all these guys were playing and it was close to the wire, I was like ‘how can I not play in the greatest tournament of all-time?’ I decided to man up.”

The convenient reason pros cite is the allure of the tournament. The whole truth is somewhat more complicated.

Poker pros weren’t the only people to register to the event in handfuls. Businessmen — many of them billionaires like Laliberte and Treasure Island owner Phil Ruffin — started committing months ago.

Twenty of them signed up, which was the catalyst in enticing the card players. Despite the price tag, professionals saw value in a tournament with so many amateur players.

“They figure there are 10 to 12 guys that really, in their minds, don’t have a chance to win,” said Poker Hall of Famer Mike Sexton, who like Esfandiari committed to play less than a month ago. “That’s $10 or $12 million on the table added to the prize pool. That’s why poker players are playing in this tournament.”

Funding wasn’t as much of an issue as it may seem. Backers and poker pros who couldn’t afford $1 million were eager to pay small percentages of others’ buy-ins with a portion of potential prize money promised in return.

Noted pros Phil Hellmuth, Jason Mercier and Ben Lamb all openly sold shares of their action at as small as 1.1 percent for $11,000.

Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi decided he wanted to play in The Big One two weeks ago, and it only took a few inquiries to secure enough outside money to make him comfortable.

Professionals selling portions of their stakes was so widespread at The Big One that one prominent player guessed Gus Hansen was the only one who stood to keep all of his prize money to himself.

Hansen, a well known Danish pro, earned the final seat in the tournament by outlasting 95 other players in a $25,300 mega satellite at the Rio late Saturday night.

“I’m sure some players are extending themselves more than they probably should,” Sexton said. “When it’s over with, they’ll scratch their heads and say, ‘ what was I thinking?’ ”

The capacity field prevented one such scenario. For evidence of how badly card players wanted in this tournament, look no further than veteran Josh Arieh.

Arieh, who has career earnings of more than $6 million and two WSOP bracelets, announced through Twitter that he would play The Big One last week. Arieh said he took all of his money out of the bank — $916,855 — and sold the rest of his action.

But before Arieh could register, the last player paid his $1 million to make The Big One a sellout.

“Maybe a blessing in disguise,” Arieh tweeted.

He may have rather sat out than play with the table draws dealt to Sexton and Esfandiari on the first day. Three of the five top earners in tournament history —Mizrachi, Hellmuth and Daniel Negreanu — were at Sexton’s table.

The top two, Erik Seidel and Phil Ivey, were seated with Esfandiari.

“This, for me, is a huge risk,” Esfandiari said. “But if I don’t take this risk, then why am I a professional gambler? The reward is worth it.”

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of course the pros are not worried---they never put up their own money---they pool suckers money together to pay these entries---why not report what is really going on in these tournaments--the suckers are the hand full of rich people who think they can play poker and then put up there own money to compete against the sharks and get carved up.